A report from Transalis: Retail resilience in a time of recession

“If a country has higher energy prices, a falling exchange rate, trade restrictions that push up goods prices, expectations among businesses and consumers of much higher inflation in a year’s time and a tight labour market – forcing wages higher, though not as high as inflation – the outlook is especially tough. Add into the mix a decade of modest inflation going into the pandemic, which most other countries have not had, pointing to a lack of underlying inflation in their economies, and you have an even worse situation.”

– The Guardian**

The latest forecast is yet another in a string of challenging circumstances faced by most B2C businesses. Increasing product and manufacturing costs combined with reduced consumer buying power does not bode well for a prosperous future. However, there are ways to mitigate the impact of a recession.

Our report, Retail Resilience in a Time of Recession, delves into the business strategies that organisations should implement to optimise their business processes and reduce costs. This is covered in three critical areas;

With many already reporting downturns in revenue, retailers need to act fast in delivering savings with long-term benefits for the business.

Forward-thinking business decision-makers are revisiting their processes and discovering opportunities to cut costs and create efficiencies. Using EDI stock reporting and replenishment, for example, optimises the balance between supply and demand. Businesses should also be reducing the admin burden on customer service teams by implementing process automation and system integration. Finally, finance teams need to consider AR process automation to reduce overheads, efficiently collect revenue, and meet international eInvoice requirements.